Find out how popular the last name Mencia is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Mencia.

Mencia, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Mencia surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mencia in America

Mencia is the 31329th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mencia surname appeared 740 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Mencia.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mencia to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Mencia

The surname Mencia has its origins in Spain, where it emerged during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Latin name "Vincentia" or "Vincentius," meaning "the conquering one" or "victorious."

In the early days, the name was often spelled as "Mencía" or "Menzía," reflecting the phonetic variations common in those times. Some sources also suggest that the name may have roots in the Basque language, where it could be linked to the word "mentzi," meaning "mountain pass."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Mencia can be found in the Cartulario de San Millán de la Cogolla, a medieval manuscript dating back to the 10th century. This document mentions a nobleman named "Mencio Fernández" who held lands in the region of La Rioja.

During the 12th century, the name Mencia appeared in several royal charters and documents from the Kingdom of León and the Kingdom of Castile. One notable figure was Mencía López de Haro, a noblewoman who lived between 1180 and 1246 and was related to the powerful Haro family.

In the 13th century, a famous Spanish troubadour and poet known as Mencía de Velasco gained recognition for her contributions to the Galician-Portuguese lyric tradition. She was born around 1210 and is believed to have been active in the court of King Alfonso X.

Another prominent individual bearing the surname Mencia was Mencía de Mendoza, a Spanish noblewoman who lived from 1508 to 1554. She was the Duchess of Calabria and played a significant role in the political and cultural life of Renaissance Spain.

Moving into the 16th century, Pedro Mencia de Sotomayor (1490-1569) was a Spanish conquistador and explorer who participated in the conquest of Peru alongside Francisco Pizarro. He was granted encomiendas (land grants) in recognition of his services.

Throughout its history, the surname Mencia has also been associated with various place names in Spain, such as Mencía de Campos in the province of Valladolid, and Mencía de la Vega in the province of Soria.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mencia

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Mencia.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Mencia was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Mencia has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Mencia was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Mencia, please contact us.

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